Editor's Notes      Michelle Porter

Hotel Reservations Alert

Dates to Remember

From the Dais      Jonathan Lee

Team Culture      Ruth Krueger

Secretary's Report      LaDawn Neary

Treasurer's Report      Barbara Fedak

Past Speaker's Report      Ken Thigpen

Delegate Assistance      David Gourley/Kathy Rye

Call for Nominations      Rich Lundy

Survey Results      Michelle Porter

Taking the Ohio Affiliate From Red to Black      Jerry Edens/Lucy Kester

Disaster Relief      Robert Fluck, Jr.

One More Benefit      Claire Aloan

Publication Schedule

Membership Figures

As we start off the new millennium, I was thinking about the profession of Respiratory Care and how we have evolved in the past 50 years. In the past year alone, we have discussed many topics such as recredentialing, Unlicensed Assistive Personnel, AARC Membership, and recruitment and retention into our schools as well as our professional organization. All of these items are a reflection of the changing trend in healthcare and within respiratory care. We need to be alert and aware of the tumultuous environment we work and live in. If we are not prepared, we could get left behind as all these changes get made.

I was excited to read the January issue of the AARC Times. The article about the expanding roles of RTs in New Mexico was very encouraging. Kudos to you, New Mexico, for your forward-thinking licensure law. As we all realize the nursing shortage, we have to alter the way we think about respiratory therapy. Our jobs can stay the same and we can hope we don't get lost in the shuffle, or we can expand to include new roles. We have ample opportunity to step to the plate now, rather than staying back and watching the balls go by. It is a great time to be involved in this profession and especially in the House of Delegates. We, as leaders, need to show the way to our constituents by thinking 'outside the box' and helping prepare for change. "The only certain thing is change itself".

Although change can be a scary thing, it is also the best way to get goals accomplished. During this presidential holiday time, I am thankful that George Washington decided to cross the Delaware, instead of being scared of what might be on the other side. Think how different life could be if Abraham Lincoln hadn't made the change that he did to abolish slavery. We have been fortunate in this country to have insightful leaders who were not afraid of change. I hope that this year, as the leadership body of this society, we can take those same steps and look to change as a challenge, rather than an obstacle. [Top]

The process we've used in the past for making hotel reservations for the House of Delegates will be changed, beginning with the next HOD meeting this July. This new procedure has been approved by Speaker Jonathan Lee.

Some time next month, I will e-mail you the instructions for making your own hotel reservations for the HOD meeting in Naples, Florida. Basically, I will provide you with an 800 phone number for you to call and make your reservations. The Executive Office will no longer collect the reservation forms or be responsible for forwarding them on to the hotel. The process will be more efficient and streamlined in an effort to eliminate possible problems.

This is just a "heads up" for delegates to watch your e-mails closely for information on the new procedure.

Thank you for your cooperation on this important matter. [Top]

March 5 -- Request nominees for Outstanding Affiliate Contributor Award - due 5/3.
March 5 -- Delegates and Society Presidents notified of availability of delegate travel funding for summer HOD meeting -- applications due 5/3.
April 2 -- Credentials of Delegate forms for summer HOD meeting mail to society presidents and delegates - due 6/1.
April 2 -- Nominees for Life and Honorary membership due to Special Recognition Chair.
April 30 -- HOD resolutions for summer meeting due to Resolutions Committee Chair.
May 1 -- Articles for The Record due.
May 3 -- Delegate assistance applications due.
May 3 -- Nominees due for Outstanding Affiliate Contributor Award.
May 15 -- AARC Record #2 is distributed.
May 18 -- Request reports for the summer HOD meeting - due 6/22.

On Developing Leadership Fire
Who will be our future leaders? Leadership development is our foundation of succession planning and for training the next generation of Society and Association leaders. Most of us have been there at one time or another. The call for nominations goes out and as we look around the state, our peers are too busy, or... or... for the commitment. Like a fire alarm that goes off in your head, it's ringing..."who's going to fill these positions on the ballot this year?" Only the problem is, not enough "fire".

Certainly, leadership exists in every level of our profession; regardless of title, office or position. Every day, each of us makes contributions to our profession that demonstrate our professional "fire". Our leadership competencies, and the understanding of how our role is tied to the success of our profession and the AARC. An important role for each of us as leaders, is to help our fellow practitioners develop skills and abilities that promote and engage their "fire", and thus our ongoing success as a profession. Development and leadership go hand in hand. Benjamin Franklin said: "Teach me and I will forget, show me and I may remember, involve me and I will learn." Personally, I was very fortunate to have found myself in a professionally developmental environment with my former manager. She had a great passion for our profession. Her fire passed on to me through the work being done at the state level. Through one-on-one invitations of others to participate, and over the years, my own fire landed me in the delegate position. I was on the ballot through a peer's personal expression of confidence. Once I became a delegate, I was blessed to have a great resource in the "senior" delegate. He helped me develop my learning of the HOD. His "fire" for this profession impressed me. From there, who can miss the collective "inferno" of all the House energy, ideas and inspiration. Talk about getting fired up! For months afterward, everyone would know I had been to a House meeting.

Whether we call it coaching or mentoring, we as leaders have a key role in creating a personal and professional development climate for our fellow RCPs; involving them in our collective professional future. Everyone can develop skills to become a leader, become a "fire starter" for others around you.

Who inspires you?
Don't we all develop our skills to be more effective at work, and in our personal lives? When engaged in developing others, we as leaders learn and grow also. We focus on how we lead, develop and partner in other aspects of our life.

Cultivating new passion and talent in our local and international activities is vital to our professional future. Leaders create relationships that identify the other person's professional needs and interests. Developing leadership skills in others increases the likelihood of their success and the success of our Association.

Developing leaders can act as a strong retention and recruitment tool, as this investment in our members creates a deeper personal link to our mission and strategic plan. Members increase their skills, are actively engaged and are more personally satisfied and professionally fulfilled.

Leadership development is not a one-shot deal. It is not "Knighting" someone, or the "tag - you're it" style. It's really a partnership. Partnering with others engages them in the local and international work we want to accomplish. They are better able to make decisions that affect our goals and understand not just how to fulfill their role, but why their role is so important to the rest of the Association. It's an ongoing practice that supports our organization's function and values. It perpetuates our success by enabling members' time to develop their skills and abilities. Members and "potential" members with a leadership desire have a path to achievement.

I suspect that a good portion of member growth or attrition may be an indication of the one-on-one opportunity we should all take advantage of at the local level. By not being clear and unmistakably in place for our peers, we potentially lose members and thus potential leaders. We've been over this before, and it is clearly the one-on-one, personal effort that creates new and returning members. We've got to look at leadership development the same way: one-on-one, inviting learning and growth, instilling a passion through nurturing, and tending the "fire". We just need to be better focused at "passing the fire" we each have within us on to our fellow RCPs. Please don't get me wrong, I know for a fact that many affiliates are incredibly successful in recruitment and development. They have created a nurturing connected- ness, culturally and professionally, within their own affiliate and community. This can be an example and model for the rest of us. It's an enduring, dependable "fire", and the members there know it. It's these leaders we all can learn from, to establish new heights in our member numbers. As our professional human resource pool grows, the cycle of leadership development continues within the AARC.

Maybe we could go another step when asking our peers for their membership or affiliate participation. Offer to mentor them and commit to their personal development one-on-one. Invite and involve them to kindle their own torch of our "fire". Our future leadership; it's up to us. [Top]

We all know teamwork is essential to success in the HOD/BOD. Our challenges to work as a team are many ­ the separation of distance ­ even continents, time zones, language (you know those southerners) and cultural barriers make it difficult at times to fully communicate and build trust to accomplish goals and function seamlessly.

Email and the list serve help us lay the ground work for the vast amounts of "stuff" we cover during our brief times together twice a year but it doesn't allow much face to face real time communication of one's personality and culture. Verna Allee in Executive Excellence stated " The knowledge that guides us to healthy enterprise is the knowledge of our minds and our hearts. Only in our hearts do we dare to ask about not what we are doing, but why are we doing."

Sharing the knowledge of our hearts is something that only happens when trust and communication are highly developed! The more we ask the questions that matter, the wiser we become. By the same token, it is extremely difficult to ask the questions that matter without trust. Most of the messes we make are not because of what we know, but because of what we don't know. Unasked questions kill us.

What's my point? The times we are together face to face are the times to share questions of the heart. I realize how difficult this is because for many of you because your time in the house is short. I also know that some of the "short timers" have incredible ideas and questions that need to be shared. Put it out there and let it fly! Trust that your comrades will accept your thoughts with an open mind and know that if we consider the full power of the questions of our hearts, we will continue to move to a HOD/BOD that is healthier, more diverse, and even more cooperative. [Top]

Wow! I can't believe it's February already! In some aspects it seems like a long time since we met in Cincinnati and in others, just like yesterday. I do know the list serves have been busy with activity and business, especially for the Board.

President Carl Wiezalis has put together the joint HOD/BOD committee and charged them with reviewing the six resolutions from our meeting in Cincy as per HOD Emergency Resolution 00-00-48. To remind everyone, resolutions 00-00-25, 16-00-26, 79-00-28, 16-00-29, 16- 00-30, and 00-00-35 all dealt with membership and cost saving efforts. The consensus was to have a combined HOD/BOD committee review these resolutions and consider the feasibility of applying them the best way possible without having to hash them out individually. The committee is comprised of:

• HOD members: Bob Fluck (NY), Mary Nelson (LA), and Ray Sibberson (OH)
• BOD members: Peg Traband (chair), David Shelledy, and Joe Huff

The request for resolutions begins 2/19/01 and they are due 4/30/01. When submitting your resolutions, please keep in mind the AARC's Strategic Plan and Goals for 2001.

• Continue the ongoing work of the Association in a seamless fashion congruent with our Strategic Plan.
• Revitalize and invigorate volunteer spirit of the Association and significantly increase membership in the AARC.
• Promote interdependent associations with our communities of interest to assure optimum patient care, education, and health promotion/disease prevention worldwide.

The Resolutions Committee is looking forward to a full slate again this summer, as we know you all will come through with many resolutions addressing, among other things, the NBRC recredentialing issue, membership concerns, and promotion of the profession. Remember that the resolutions can be submitted either by the form mailed to you or electronically through the AARC's web page.

Finally, I'd like to thank you all for allowing me to serve you as Secretary for the HOD. I'm eager to take on the challenges and new experiences, and hope that I meet all of your expectations. [Top]

I would like to thank you for electing me as Treasurer for the House of Delegates and for allowing me to serve our profession in this capacity. I will try to live up to your expectations for this office.

As we enter 2001 we face challenges to become even more economically astute in our approach to the budget and budget process. Many resolutions were generated and presented at our last meeting and demonstrate the seriousness that all have taken to this task.

While trying to bring myself up to speed on my new position I have reviewed some notes about the HOD budget process that I will include to assist all Delegates in the understanding of the budget process.

One of the major ways that the HOD participates in the governance of the AARC is related to the responsibility for approval of the AARC budget. Budget preparation and the approval process has two major steps: the projection of the "rates and volumes" and the preparation of a proposed budget.

The proposed "rates and volumes" are prepared by the AARC Executive Office staff based on the budget history of the association. They are reviewed by the AARC Budget Committee prior to consideration by the HOD and the BOD and presented to the HOD and BOD at the summer meeting during executive session. This is proprietary information and must remain confidential.

To review what exactly are rates and volumes I will go over a few terms. An expense rate is the anticipated cost that the AARC will pay for an item. An example would be the cost for one postage stamp. A revenue rate is the price the AARC expects to charge for a service or a product such as the dues charge for Specialty Section membership. After the rates have been determined, then volumes are projected. Volume is the number of units that the AARC expects to use/sell/retain in the fiscal year. Examples are number of mailings, number of RC Week T-shirts sold, number of Specialty Section members. Therefore rate will be multiplied by the volume which equals the budgeted amount.

Example: Anticipated postage rate ($.34) x Anticipated Volume (10,000 pieces of mail) = $3,400. which would be budgeted for postage for the xyz committee.

The AARC President Elect and the Treasurer meet with the AARC controller to address the budgeting of committees and special projects as do the HOD Speaker Elect and Treasurer to consider the budgetary needs for the HOD and its committees for the upcoming year. The Executive Office then constructs the preliminary budget using the approved rates and volumes, expense and revenue trends, anticipated needs for special projects and other input.

This process continues until a budget has been prepared for all AARC and Daedalus revenues and expense accounts. If it is found that projected expenses exceed projected revenue adjustments are made until the budget is balanced. This can be accomplished by either completely eliminating certain expenses and/or by decreasing the entire budget by a fixed percent. The unit cost of an item might not be able to be decreased, as in the cost of postage, but the volume may be adjusted to a lower amount.

The proposed budget is then mailed to each delegation of the HOD and to the BOD for review prior to the fall meeting. I would ask that you take time prior to this meeting to carefully review this document. The HOD and the BOD will take action on the proposed balanced budget at the annual meeting. Again let me remind you that both rates and volumes and budget are all proprietary information and must remain confidential.

I hope this has helped those of you who may be new tot his process and serve as a quick review for continuing delegates. [Top]

The list serve has been relatively quiet since getting back from Cincinnati; that tells me things are hopefully going well or maybe a more likely scenario is that you're so busy you may not have had a lot of time to check! I hope your 2001 is getting off to a good start. Before delving too far into the meat of my report, I want to take this opportunity to thank each of you again for all the support, patience, diligence and extraordinary effort during my term as Speaker. It was a period of learning, intrigue, and challenges but maybe most importantly, tremendous personal growth. I leave the post with more respect than ever for our House. You folks met every charge head-on and I think the effects of some of your actions will be felt for years to come. Having plowed through the business at hand as efficiently as you did was certainly a tribute to your preparation, dedication and professionalism.

Now for the business at hand, the following is an update on action taken by our Board of Directors on the resolutions that were passed by the House at our October meeting:

HR16-00-34 "That the AARC establish a speakers bureau of practitioners willing to speak on membership and the Political Advocacy Contact Team (PACT)" was approved.

HR 77-00-32 "That the AARC include presentation of all awards at the Annual AARC Awards Ceremony" was referred to the Executive Office.

HR 57-00-31 "That the AARC investigate to obtain liability insurance and/or officer and directors insurance for state affiliates a rider policy to the AARC liability insurance and/or a group purchasing agreement" was referred to the Executive Office.

HR 00-00-48 "That an Ad Hoc Committee comprised of three members of the BOD appointed by the President and three members of the HOD appointed by the Speaker (who will elect their own chair) be formed to consider HOD resolutions #00-00-25, #16-00-26, #79-00-28, #16-00-29, #16-00-30, #00-00-35 and other similar means to enhance membership and improve the financial status of the AARC and report back to the HOD at the Summer 2001 meeting" was amended as follows:

"That an Ad Hoc Committee comprised of three members of the BOD and three members of the HOD, recommended by the Speaker to the AARC President, be formed to consider HOD resolutions #00-00-25, #16-00-26, #79-00- 28, #16-00-29, #16-00-30, #00-00-35 and other similar means to enhance membership and improve the financial status of the AARC and report back to the HOD at the Summer 2001 meeting." This amended motion was approved.

Pursuant to this action, the Ad Hoc Committee on HOD Resolutions was formed and is chaired by President-Elect Peg Traband. Other committee members include Bob Fluck, Joe Huff, Mary Nelson, David Shelledy and Ray Sibberson.

We will anxiously await the report of this committee as this venture was certainly a step "out of the box" for most, if not all of us. For those of you who were not privy to the background of the above resolution, it was a direct result of the authors of several resolutions pooling their ideas with the intent of improving the fiscal viability of our organization. In their original form, we could have easily spent 8-10 hours or more discussing the pros and cons of these ideas. The authors pulled together and recommended the above action in hopes that it might be more dealt with more concisely and efficiently. Should you have any questions or desire further information on these actions, please feel free to contact me.

In our next issue, we'll report on the activities of our Special Committee on Leadership Development and any other applicable updates on our other activities. Past President Garry Kauffman and the rest of our committee have a very aggressive agenda in front of us but we are already making some significant progress. Stay tuned! Once again we'll find that unique niche for bringing the cream to the top!

See you soon in sunny Naples!

Peace. [Top]

The Delegate Assistance Committee is charged with reviewing and acting on all requests for delegate travel assistance according to House of Delegates policy. The Committee will seriously consider all requests from State Affiliates who may have financial difficulty in funding travel for their delegate(s) to attend the House of Delegates meetings. The request for applications for Delegate Assistance for the Summer House of Delegates meeting in Naples, Florida will be sent in early March. The requests are due to the Executive Office on May 3, 2001.

Last year's co-chairpersons, Mary Nelson and Randy Gorres, reported at the fall HOD meeting that the committee has seen a steady decline in the applications for assistance. The committee is budgeted a specific amount of money towards delegate assistance each year. The committee encourages any affiliate who is experiencing financial difficulties to submit an application. Feel free to contact the committee co-chairpersons or any committee member with any questions or concerns. [Top]

"Given the right circumstances, from no more than dreams, determination, and the liberty to try, ordinary people consistently do extraordinary things. To lead is to create those circumstances." Dee Hock, Visa Founder & CEO Emeritus.

"Truth? I care about the job, of course. But mostly, I just want to be inspired." Jerry McGuire

If your state affiliate is successful, it is no doubt due to the extraordinary efforts and contributions of several people. However, we sometimes find ourselves successful due to the leadership, creativity, and inspiration of one or two extraordinary individuals.

Is your affiliate privileged to have someone who has provided dedicated service or made significant contributions to the practice of respiratory care? Consult with your boards and consider nominating these dedicated individuals for the Outstanding Affiliate Contributor Award. Forms will soon be distributed to affiliate presidents and HOD members soliciting nominations for the Outstanding Affiliate Contributor Award. Encourage your affiliates to review the criteria for the award and take advantage of this opportunity to recognize someone for their hard work and dedication to the profession.

Calls for nominations for Life and Honorary Membership have already been mailed out. Last year's Special Recognition Committee had the challenging, yet honorable, task of identifying and recommending nominees to the AARC BOD. We were fortunate to have several excellent candidates, which I consider a testimonial to the quality and dedication of our AARC and affiliate leadership. Please remember the due date of April 2 and, if you haven't already given it some thought, start considering candidates for Life and Honorary Membership and make your nominations. [Top]

On behalf of the Progress and Transition Committee I am submitting a report of the HOD Effectiveness Survey Results. Our committee received 76 surveys back at the meeting in Cincinnati. Thank you again for your help in filling out the surveys and returning them. The questions and averaged number responses as well as comments are listed below. If you have any questions, please contact Michelle Porter or Jacque Coons, the new P & T Committee chair.

4 - Strongly Agree
3 - Somewhat Agree
2 - Somewhat Disagree
1 - Strongly Disagree

1. The AARC House of Delegates is an appropriate forum for comprehensive reporting of AARC activities. 3.92
2. The leadership of the House of Delegates consistently attempts to promote involvement of the chartered affiliates. 3.84
3. Communication between the AARC HOD and BOD is generally effective and continues to improve. 3.74
4. The resolution process is an effective means of promoting changes within the AARC. 3.57
5. The "Open Microphone" session provides an effective means of introducing new ideas and fostering cohesiveness. 3.76
6. The resolution process allows for timely input into AARC strategic planning. 3.53
7. The format of the AARC HOD provides good opportunities for both formal and informal networking. 3.86
8. The HOD Committee system promotes affiliate involvement in planning and impacting the direction of the HOD and the AARC. 3.62
9. The HOD is an effective means of addressing key affiliate issues through existing AARC structure. 3.78

COMMENTS:
Excellent meeting. Great organization. I really liked the efficiency.

This has been a wonderful meeting. I am proud of the HOD.

Less time is good, but less time for networking.

The emergency resolution submitted took all other resolutions away from the HOD. The HOD's job is to discuss and vote on issues and it seems we just gave that duty away this time.

This has been the most effective and productive meeting. Amazing efficiency, fabulous cooperation, effective use of "call the question."

The two day format works well. It forces us to think outside our box and work together on all the issues. Everyone seems to feel we as a body feel more productive. It is an administrative nightmare for the speaker, but it seems to work very well.

I think it would be a nice gesture if you could have an informal meeting between new delegates and officers or committee just to talk and exchange comments, etc. besides just the orientation.

The resolution process was great this year.

I am still very concerned about how many or our HOD members still smoke. Aren't we role models?! Many thanks to the efficient use of time during this meeting. It was very much appreciated. I think that the communication between HOD speaker and our AARC president was quite obvious and excellent. It make us appear that we are aiming/going in the same direction. Two day format "good idea".

Resolutions requiring a financial impact statement need to be processed carefully before they are presented to the HOD as 'resolutions'. I cannot stress enough the need to have the completed information before considering these resolutions. We need as much financial info as possible. I feel the 2 day format is an effective and efficient use of time. We are able to consider the issues, network with others, and communicate with BOD during that time.

Gets better all the time. In Your Face!

Best HOD meeting yet.

More information and activity guided toward HCFA concerning CPT coding, revenue coding and reimbursement for respiratory care procedures.

Valuable well spent time this session. Combining resolutions was an excellent idea.

The change to a two day format was a great idea, but I have concerns that we may be rushing through some things that need more discussion. Am also concerned that we may have needed a longer lunch and longer breaks which are not possible with two day time period.

The HOD leadership did an excellent job in keeping on task and the meeting ran very smoothly.

Two day meeting works very well. Having podium/microphone on floor at head of table also very good idea. Keep up the innovation. Good meetings - keeping to the point.

I like the 2 day format. Longer days, but less of them is good. Easier to leave home and work.

Ban all cell phones!

Please stop freezing us out at our meetings OR provide blankets.

The communication and collaboration of the HOD and BOD has improved to a high level of professionalism. I'm proud to be part of this body.

I don't see why the speaker gives certificates to officers of the house. The position speaks for itself as to expectations and recognition. Seems unnecessary to parade these officers even more. Focus groups provided excellent "formal networking". Possibly focus groups in summer 2001 on membership recruitment efforts.

Resolutions need more "tweaking" before they come to the house. Time was a problem this year. We have 11 months prior the next summer meeting. Let's bring well written and pre-edited resolutions to the summer meeting. Thanks for four great years.

Very cold! Too much chatter at the tables while speakers are speaking. Hard to hear often. Please try to keep order so we can all benefit.

Super process this year for the resolutions. Thank you to Ken et al. I am thoroughly impressed with the House. I feel so fortunate to be a part of this group.

This meeting was especially informative and efficient. [Top]

When faced with certain financial ruin two years ago, the Ohio Society for Respiratory Care needed a plan of action to get back on the road to a "healthy" future. The year 2000 was a rough year for us. We had to take out a short-term loan for $5,000 to help pay off debt incurred the previous year, continue to pay for our current expenses, and try to eliminate future expense. It was a monumental task!

We utilized a variety of strategies in an attempt to get ourselves back on track. First, we had to reduce all spending to "nil" and still try to respond to the needs of our constituents. Several institutions in the state helped with copying and mailings, which enabled us to maintain the communications of the society. As a result of this help, we weren't completely "dead in the water". All previously budgeted items were suspended. Our office staff voluntarily took a salary cut, and web page revisions were cut. The society also decided not to have our state meetings at a conference facility, but rather hold the meetings at a college or hospital campus. This alone had the potential for saving a large amount of money.

Having reduced current expenses, and controlled future expenses, we then began the arduous task of "digging out of the hole." Several things attributed to this success. Our Critical Care committee produced a very successful meeting. The Ohio Society sponsored a refreshment booth at the Bengal football team home games in Cincinnati. This netted a substantial profit for us and was not too labor intensive. Moreover, it saved us the drudgery of candy sales and the like. People came to us for our product, and we got the name of our Society and profession out in the public eye! Fortunately we also had our usual revenue sharing check from the AARC. Several members donated money from their own pockets to help us. All in all, we rolled up our sleeves, put our nose to the grindstone, and eliminated our debt. In fact, we went from being over $5,000 in the red, to approximately $10,000 in the black.

With that behind us, we then had to determine the causes for out difficulty, and find ways to prevent this from occurring again. The Society conducted several surveys of our constituents: vendors and therapists at large (members and non-members). These surveys covered topics such as educational needs, methods for improved communications, and how to better utilize the assets of our vendors. This information has helped us a great deal.

As a society, we had become rather complacent about who we are and what we do. The information gleaned from these surveys opened our eyes to a number of things we had been taking for granted over the years. We had taken for granted that everyone knew what the OSRC was and what we did for the therapists in the state of Ohio. We also were operating on the same premise of earlier years, that hospitals pay for employees to attend conferences. This is no longer true in today's market.

From the surveys that were returned, we discovered that there is a huge need for "affordable/ worthwhile" conferences. The usual 2-day format no longer fits within the "budget" since nowadays most meeting expenses must be paid for by the individual attendees out of their own pocket. Hence this year we are attempting to reformat our educational meetings to fit within the individual practitioners' budget. Smaller 1/2 day conferences are being planned throughout the state and they are being held at hospitals or college campuses. This will not only reduce the amount of money an individual will have to pay, but reduce the time off work.

We have also developed a new form of communication for the society, a "fax news" format. This will decrease printing and mailing cost substantially. Additionally, we are forming an e-mail group of therapists within the state to further reduce the cost of communication.

I began my tenure as President of the Ohio Society for Respiratory Care with the hope of creating a new attitude and a new direction for accomplishing the goals of the Society. I gathered a team of individuals to develop Mission, Value, Vision and Goal statements for the group. Along those same lines, I created an "oath of office". The purpose of the oath was to promote accountability in the individuals holding positions on the board, whether appointed or elected. A cabinet was appointed of members who, by previous activities, were determined to be key to the future success of the Society. This group is charged with developing goals and time lines for the Society as a whole, and helping to stream line our meetings so they can be more organized and productive. This cabinet will meet between Society meetings to identify new projects and write agendas, thereby reducing the time required for regular meetings of the entire Board.

We have more plans in the works for our new direction, and for renewing enthusiasm. Of course, with a revitalization campaign we need to try new catchy slogans such as: "THE OSRC - WE GOT A NEW ATTITUDE!" or "THE NEW OSRC- WE'RE WORKIN' OUR WAY BACK TO YOU!"

" We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all we need to make us happy is something to be enthusiastic about."- Charles Kingsley [Top]

AARC President Carl Wiezalis has appointed me chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Disaster Relief. Among the charges of this committee are: "Attempt to generate a list of respiratory therapists who have been active in disaster relief and suggest methods of communicating among them." I should point out that in the context of this committee, the more appropriate word would be "response" instead of "relief". In other words, we are trying to get therapists engaged in actually going to the scene of a disaster to provide medical care to the victims of that disaster. (I will be recommending a name change for the committee in my first report to the Board of Directors.)

In the United States, the unit of disaster response is the Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT). These are components of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which is part of the Public Health Service in the Department of Health and Human Services. When circumstances require medical assistance, FEMA contacts the commander of the appropriate DMAT and requests a certain number of personnel with different qualifications. The problem is that the people at FEMA don't know to ask for respiratory therapists to respond to these disasters. Unfortunately, however, it makes sense that in nearly every kind of disaster, whether natural (hurricane, flood, earthquake) or manmade (bombing, poison gas release, biological release), the skills and expertise of respiratory therapists would be invaluable for aiding the victims. Many of these patients will ultimately require airway management and mechanical ventilation. Without a respiratory therapist there, the care of these victims would suffer.

There are 26 DMATs in the United States, 25 based in states, one the Public Health Service. Five are in California, four in Florida, and two each in Georgia and Ohio. The rest are in Arkansas, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington. I would appreciate the assistance of the delegations from those states to try to locate any respiratory therapists who are presently serving on (or have served in the past) a DMAT and have them contact me by phone (315-464-5580) or e-mail (fluckr@mail.upstate.edu). That would provide a great start in our learning how respiratory therapists can serve on these teams. There will probably be an article in AARC Times shortly about the experiences of two therapists, one from Ohio, one from California, on DMATs. [Top]

Throughout my career as a respiratory care professional, I have learned that many of my fellow "professionals" do not see the benefit of belonging to their professional organization. Again and again I learn of new ways to entice people to join the AARC. Everyone has their own list of favorites, ranging from professional pride to a terrific journal to discounts at educational meetings. I'd like to talk to you about one of my personal favorites: the list serve.

For years I used my computer only as a word processor. At one point I was forced to learn to use a spread sheet, but that went by the wayside when my career path took me away from budgets, expenses, and BvsA reports. I finally broke down (actually, my kids forced me into it) and got a home computer that did more than print documents. I signed up for AOL ("ALL my friends have AOL, Mom!") and entered the glorious world of the Web. Now we could "go online" and look up all kinds of neat stuff, from Nintendo codes for my son and his friends, to research for an assigned paper for the high school set, to building tree houses for my contractor husband, and of course anything medical for me. And of course I began to communicate electronically with some of my personal and professional contacts (when my daughter would let me near the computer, that is!).

It wasn't until I began to participate in the section list serves, however, that I began to realize the full potential of my computer as a communication tool and information source. In my previous position, my interests were in the areas of home care and pulmonary rehabilitation, so I signed on to those list serves. All of a sudden I was introduced to a depth of information and resources that I could not have imagined. Ask any question, someone will answer. Pose a dilemma and you'll get a variety of points of view. Learn about new products and techniques, reimbursement and regulation issues, problem areas to avoid.

Then I changed jobs and joined the Management Section. Wow! This group really knows how to share information and ideas. Need to evaluate a piece or type of equipment? Put your query on the list serve and you'll get information from all over the country, big hospitals and small ones, pro and con, plus suggestions to expand your search in ways you hadn't even thought about. The "short list" of recent topics includes sleep diagnostic equipment, water seal CPAP, multiple use circuits, IPPB devices, nasal prongs for infants, portable suction equipment, needle protective devices, various and sundry mechanical ventilators, and peak flow meters.

More concerned about how to do something than what to do it with? How about use of Pulmicort respules, invasive bi-level policies, NIV via face mask, or frequency of nebulizer changes? Or how about a policy for Flutter valves, PEP, prioritizing workload, or saline instillation with endotracheal suctioning? Want to know how other hospitals handle RT coverage of high risk deliveries? Or who has had experience with self-scheduling?

If you're concerned about JCAHO, you can find information on missed treatments, pain assessment, conscious sedation, and consent forms. Do you manage areas other than RT, such as cardiac or EEG? So do lots of other managers, and they gladly share their experience and expertise.

The billing department hounding you? Just ask, and you'll get information on charges for medications with SVN treatments, reimbursement for pulmonary functions, and how to get paid for echos. Or join a lively discussion on the role of RT staff in obtaining appropriate information for coding and charging. Need help with competency assessment or want to learn about staff evaluation of managers (maybe not!)? Just ask, someone out there will have some help for you. I am truly amazed (and continually humbled) by the breadth of knowledge in this group.

While I admit there are some days that the sheer volume of correspondence is overwhelming, the trade-off is well worth it. Anyone who has an interest in managing, whether from a clinical or administrative perspective, would find this most helpful. I'd love to hear from members of other sections about the utility of their list serves. Maybe this is one more thing we can add to the list of member benefits, especially for the younger set who didn't have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the computer age! [Top]

The following schedule will be used for the remainder of this year regarding the AARC Record:

Articles Due
May 1, 2001
October 1, 2001

Published
May 15, 2001
October 15, 2001

Be sure to e-mail your articles, IN RTF FORMAT, to:

Claire Aloan, MS, RRT, caloan@shsny.com

Michelle Porter, RRT, pcmporte@ihc.com
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Active -- 23,996
Foreign -- 276
Honorary -- 24
Industrial -- 2,254
Life -- 52
Physician -- 237
Student -- 4,137
Special -- 357

TOTAL -- 31,333